Dan Rutherford on Illinois Governor's race: 'I don't have to pay people to support me.'

In a clear salvo launched at millionaire Bruce Rauner, Illinois Treasurer and GOP gubernatorial hopeful Dan Rutherford lauded his lean, mean campaign operation while poking at Rauner’s spending.

Earlier this week, Rauner announced impressive fund-raising numbers, hauling in at or near $1 million for the third consecutive quarter. He also revealed he’s spent far more than other candidates, having just $600,000 of that money on hand.

“We’ve got supporters out there. We don’t have to pay people to support us,” Rutherford said in a recent interview with the Sun-Times. Rutherford said he has volunteers statewide who have been loyal to him since his 2010 statewide run for treasurer. “We don’t have political consultants coming from out of Illinois telling us about the politics of Illinois.”

For its part, Rauner’s campaign pointed to raising money from more than 1,200 donors. He’s spent around $2.4 million on TV ads, digital infrastructure, radio ads — as well as tens of thousands of dollars on consulting. The two men are in a four-way GOP primary race for governor. Also running is State Sen. Kirk Dillard (R-Hinsdale) and State Sen. Bill Brady (R-Bloomington).

“Part of fund-raising is not just the amount of money you raise but how you manage it,” said Rutherford. Rutherford’s campaign will have $1.2 million on hand when filings are made public on Oct. 15, including $333,000 raised in this quarter, he said.